EXHORT ONE ANOTHER DAILY

Photo created by Steve Long 

Devotional by Steve Long

God tells us to exhort one another daily. The Greek word translated "exhort" is παρακαλειτε from parakaleo meaning to call to one's side, exhort, entreat, encourage, comfort, or instruct.

Jesus called the Holy Spirit "another Comforter" (parakletos). This means that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are exhorters.

The word παρακαλειτε is also imperative. God is telling us that it is imperative that we talk to each other regularly, even daily, about the dangers of falling away from the faith. This was a very real problem among the Hebrew believers of the first century A.D. There was great persecution of the believers at this time and a great deal of pressure to abandon the exclusivity of the gospel of Christ and just wander back into Judaism (meaning that the law and sacrifices and the religious activities of Israel were sufficient). It would have been easy to just say, "Well, we all live in a society of diversity and we should just coexist."

Many Christians are feeling that same pressure today. We see a large number of young adults who have abandoned the faith of Christ. I am in constant prayer about how to reach or rereach this generation.

The key must be to reach them before they stray. God's word says it is imperative to exhort one another daily so that the other may not be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. How deceitful sin is! We must not succumb to its snares.

We must learn again to love others one on one, taking time to talk to that single individual before he or she approaches the precipice of the danger of falling. When we do, we are most like our Lord.